Assemblymember Landon Dais secures additional $1 million in STEM grants for Bronx schools
Bronx Assemblymember Landon Dais and his team are touting their success in securing an additional $1 million in grants totaling $2 million for STEM programs at 10 local Bronx public schools—the largest technology grant ever awarded to District Nine schools, he said.
The funding will go toward obtaining new equipment, fostering new programs, and enhancing existing STEM facilities.
“The reality is the future of jobs and schools is going to be heavily technology-based, especially [with] the advent of artificial intelligence and other technical skills, so what I wanted to make sure is that the children in my district, District Nine in the Bronx, don’t fall behind,” Dais said. Dais said the grants will aid in a brighter future not only for students but also for the Bronx as a whole. “I want them to be the future of engineers, architects in the Bronx. I want them to build new affordable housing in our boroughs,” he said. The goal is to create a proper basis from the beginning in elementary and middle school so students are better prepared for what comes next in high school, college, and life after school.
Previously, many of the challenges to STEM education in the district were simply a lack of “access to capital” and the fact that the schools weren’t made a priority, Dais said. That is something he hopes to remedy.
“I made it a priority, and I think that made a difference. I think you just got to make sure that the administration of [grant support] isn’t held up by red tape,” Dais said. “I’m going to work with my superintendent and principals to take account of it. I’m going to make sure there’s no funny accounting. This is really necessary—got to make sure that it is not only executed but also executed in an efficient manner.”
Members of the community have expressed their excitement about the funding, including Principal Sharda Flores of P.S. 53 Basheer Quisim. Flores and the teachers at P.S. 53 were in the midst of discussions about creating a STEM lab even before receiving news of the grant, which made the news of the funding they would receive a dream come true.
“Knowing that we now have $200,000 to create a fully functioning lab site versus ‘Hey, let’s put some stuff together’—it means the world to my kids, because my children truly believe in that tactile learning,” Flores said. “Kids will come to school if they know they have technology this day. The idea is to make learning cyclical and to make it enjoyable every day, so our kids are coming to school, our kids are motivated.”
Flores sis also looking forward to reactions from parents and the community at large.
“To know that we’re having this fully funded grant—it means the world to me…I’m getting chills talking about it. We posted it on our social media page, and parents were through the roof, they were so excited. They were more excited…just to know that their kids are going to have access to all these different learning [tools].”
Flores described STEM education as especially important because it provides students with a “new avenue to explore learning”; one that will provide a fuller, more comprehensive way of learning that allows students with different learning styles to remain engaged.
Securing the grant is an impressive feat for Dais within his first three months in office.
“These kids are special. They just need the opportunity and the tools to allow them to be successful, and that’s our job,” Dais said. “That’s what I believe that is my job to do: to give them the opportunity to be successful, be the best version of themselves.”
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